1) A big motif throughout the book is the idea of civic pride, the idea that one's city is exponentially far more superior than any other city in the world, causes enmity between cities, specifically rivals New York City and Chicago. Ultimately, Chicago gains permission over New York to host the World's Fair. Why, do you think, does Burnham call upon his colleagues from New York to help him, and, furthermore, why do they accept? If civic pride is considered more important than the pride of the nation, then why doesn't New York stand back and watch Chicago struggle on its own?
2) Based on the phrase "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer," Burnham invites rival Chicago architects Adler & Sullivan to join in the creation of the World's Fair. Historically, who else added his rivals to his personal cabinet, and why do you think he and Burnham made the decision to do so? Do the heated debates of rivalry and conflicting opinions really get the desired results, or does working with people who are easy to work with become the more beneficial option? Why?
Heath Koch
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ReplyDelete1) Heath, I agree with your idea of civic pride versus national pride posing as a confliction for the people arranging the fair. However, I feel that the answer to your question would be: Yes, even though Civic Pride is important to each individual city, the Affair is supposed to represent the strengths of the United States as whole compared to places like Paris. Even though the competition of the individual cities is emphasized to outdo each other, the more important goal for the cities is to outdo other nations as a whole. They may experience individual disunity, but they all work together to show ethnocentrism towards the United States.
ReplyDeleteI could relate these ideas to a previous chapter of the book that mentions Benjamin Franklin's cartoon "Join or Die." I feel that this compromised unity solves the problem among the states that Franklin once addressed. He said if the Colonies would unite at least enough to win over their common cause even though they were all individually different, the unity would lead to success. This is exactly showed through the World Affair.
2) When Burnham first invited his rivals to work with him, I was first kind of confused as to whyhe would be willing to share the credit of the Affair with his rivals. However, as I read on I realized that Burnham could be foiled to the great politician and president, Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln had also kept his rivals close to him by placing them in his presidential cabinet. I feel that this is a smart move on both of the character's parts because by keeping one's most rival opponent close, they get the brains of someone just as sharp as they are, which is why they are rivals, on their side rather than as an opponent. Heated debates of rivalry and conflicting opinions do get the desired results because every detailed possibility is discussed over, which is what will help achieve the goal of the men to make the World's Affair the greatest it has ever been.
ReplyDeleteThis also ties in the idea of civic pride over national pride because all the rivals overlook their own individual differences to try and achieve the goal of creating the best World's Affair.